Island



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1'.

W. E CHAMBERLAIN; APPARATUS FOR LIGHTING THE PLATFORMS AND STEPS 0P RAILWAY CARS.

No. 254,091. Patented Feb. 21,1882.

INVENTOR.

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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

W. E. CHAMBERLAIN. APPAEATTFS FOR LIGHTING THE PLATFORMS AND STEPS 0T- RAILWAY cARs.

No. 254,091. atentedl h 21.158 2,

N. PETERS, momumo rfar. wyfn mn. by c. I?!

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM E. CHAMBERLAIN, OF PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO EDGAR G. WINDSOR, OF SAME PLACE.

APPARATUS FOR LIGHTING.THE PLATFORMS AND STEPS 0F RAILWAY-CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 254,091, dated February 21, 1882.

Application filed May 17, 1881. (No model.)

To all whom it mayconcem B it known that I, WILLIAM E. CHAMBER- LAIN, of the city and county of Providence,in the State of Rhode Island, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Lighting the Platforms and Steps of Badway-Gars; and I do hereby declare that the following specification, taken in connection with the drawings furnished and forming a part of the same, is a clear, true, and complete description of my invention.

Heretofcre various arrangements of lamps and reflectors have been devised for attaining the end sought by me. In most cases, however, the lamps have been located within the car and arranged by means of a reflector over the platform to more or less deflect a portion of the light; but, so far as my experience goes, the lighted horizontal area resulting therefrom is not sufliciently extensive to completely obviate the liability of passengers to leave the lower step when over a culvert or trestle-work or when on-a bridge. In some cases lamps have been heretofore located in the hood of the car; but, so far as my knowledge extends, they have been so arranged as to also cast their light into the car near the roofor horizontally rearward, or, as in street-cars, for also illuminating a box-sign indicating the route to which said cars belong, and such prior arrangements of lamps cause more or less of the platform and steps tobe so shadowed as to failin securing the degree of safety which I deem of great importance.

My invention consists in the combination, with the hood, of a car, of a lamp located centrally therein, and surrounded by a conical or inclined reflector, which casts reflected light over an area greater than the entire platform and its steps, and also so as to include in said lighted area the platform of an adjacent coupled car. This lastnamed capacity is found to be specially valuable on very dark nights, because two adjacent lam ps on separate cars fully blend their reflected light, and thereby more thoroughly expose the coupling-space, the platform, and the steps, and include within the drawings, in which- Figure 1, Sheet 1, is a sectional view of a portion of a car-hood having a lamp and reflector mounted therein in accordance with my invention, the reflector being shown in central vertical section." Fig. 2, Sect 1, is an end view of a car with the hood in seczion and the lamp and reflector applied thereto. Fig. 3, Sheet 2, is a side view of a car with its hood partially broken away to disclose the lamp and reflector in position.

The lamp A and globe B are of the usual type. The reflectorGis here shown to be coni cal in form, and its upper or small end is attachcd to the usual chimney or cowl, D, and

at its lower end it is attached to the under side of the hood E by lneansof a flange. The refl ctor is preferably conical, as shown; but it mav be four-sided and ed at lbeangle, substantially as shown, whereby the downward and lateral rais on the lilies F and the rearward or forward rays on the line G i lum nate a horizontal area embracing the platform H and extending beyond the lowest of the steps I on each side, and also embracing the platform of an adj-ac nt conph-d car, as indlcaled in Fig. 3.

Having thus described my inw llll0ll,IUlllm as new and desire to secure by Let ters Patent The combination, substantially as described,

of a oar-hood, a lamp mounted centrally therein, and an inclined reflector surrounding said lamp, having its angles of reflection arranged, as described, with special reference to lighting an area extending beyond the etd of the-plats 

